WAILUKU – The Mayor’s Office of Economic Development (OED) last week announced a special incentive to urge Maui residents and visitors to support Lanai businesses by attending the upcoming Fifth Friday Town Party on Lanai on Friday, May 29.

To accommodate the special Friday event, OED has teamed up with Expeditions Maui-Lanai Ferry and the Lanai Chamber of Commerce to provide round-trip ferry and ground transportation between Maui and Lanai, including a special late-night ferry that leaves Manele Harbor at 9:30 p.m. Expeditions’ last ferry to Maui on a regular day is at 6:45 p.m.

The Fifth Friday Lanai Package includes a round-trip ferry ride between Lahaina Harbor and Manele Harbor, round-trip ground transportation between Manele Harbor and Lanai City, and an event “passport.” Visitors may collect passport stamps from participating businesses to enter a free prize drawing; details can be found at www.fifthfridaylanai.com.

Residents and visitors may choose to depart from Lahaina at any of Expeditions’ scheduled departure times (6:45 a.m., 9:15 a.m., 12:45 p.m., 3:15 p.m. and 5:45 p.m.); however, the return departure from Manele Harbor to Maui is limited to 9:30 p.m. only.

The cost for the package is $60 per adult and $50 per child and can be booked online at http://goo.gl/MmtcmG. A discounted price is also available for kama’aina who already have a ticket booklet from Expeditions; visit the above website for more details.

All businesses will be open throughout the Friday Town Party event, which runs from 5:30 to 8 p.m. There will be food booths and restaurants serving up special local favorites as well as several music and entertainment venues. Additionally, visitors will be able to tour the newly renovated Lanai Theater and the Lanai Culture and Heritage Center.

The Fifth Friday Lanai Package will be available for all Fifth Friday Town Parties in 2015.

“Our Friday Town Parties are very popular, and it is with great pleasure that we extend this community celebration to the island of Lanai,” said Mayor Alan Arakawa.

Teena Rasmussen, OED director, noted that Lanai businesses are facing a very challenging time.

“In June, both major hotels on the island will be closed for renovations, so we are doing everything we can to urge Maui residents and visitors to help our neighboring island by taking a day trip to Lanai,” she said.

For more information on Fifth Friday Lanai, visit www.fifthfridaylanai.com. For details on all of Maui County’s Friday Town Parties, visit www.mauifridays.com.